Rooney excited by Capello
Saturday, 22 December, 2007
An excited Wayne Rooney is looking forward to working with new England Manager Fabio Capello.
Wayne Rooney couldn't hide his excitement at the arrival of new England Manager Fabio Capello as he answered questions from schoolchildren this week.
The Manchester United striker looked relaxed and upbeat as he was quizzed by pupils of Wellington School in Timperley, Manchester, and looked ahead to England's friendly against Switzerland next February.
Rooney, speaking for the first time since Capello's appointment, admits he is thrilled at the prospect of working under the Italian.
"I’m looking forward to it," said the Three Lions star, who was speaking at a sponsoredbyyou.com school visit organised by England Team Sponsors Nationwide Building Society.
"It’s always exciting when you get a new manager and you don’t know if he’s going to change things or what he’s going to do.
"So of course I’m interested to meet him and work under him. His record is brilliant at club level so I’m sure he can bring something extra to England as well.
"I was pleased when he was appointed actually because with his record that’s the main thing.
"As an Englishman you want the best man for the job who is going to try and help us win trophies. And personally I think he is the best man."
Rooney has promised Capello will have the full backing of the England players when he starts his career at Wembley in February.
"Hopefully we can win something for him and help him become a legend for England," he said.
"Obviously the main thing is to win your games. Hopefully we can do that as a team and I’m sure we’ll be giving 110 per cent for the new manager.
"What I’m looking forward to most now is winning trophies. A country with the talent we’ve got as footballers we should be up there challenging for the main two trophies."
That process starts with a World Cup qualifying campaign next autumn and Rooney is already focused.
He added: "I think we’ve definitely got the quality to qualify for the next World Cup. It was a big disappointment not qualifying for the Euros but now we’ve got to look forward and look to get to the World Cup.
"We were all bitterly disappointed not to be at Euro 2008. It’s a nightmare to be honest. But we’re obviously trying to put that right. We can’t look back - we just have to look forward.
"A country like ours can’t go two major tournaments without qualifying. We have to make sure we do everything right and everything properly for World Cup qualification.
Capello has already made it clear he wants his players to have huge pride in the England shirt and show passion for their country.
Rooney, of course, has always done exactly that and he has vowed nothing will change.
He said: "To play for your country is something I’m extremely proud of. It’s a great honour for me and my family and everyone around me. It’s something you can’t explain really.
"Every time the national anthem comes on you get shivers down your spine. It’s just something I love doing and hopefully I can do it a lot more and bring a trophy back for myself, the team and all the fans as well."